​FAQs

​What is EUMEDCONNECT3? EUMEDCONNECT3 is an EC co-funded project providing the regional research and education network for the Eastern Mediterranean, connecting researchers, academics and students in Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine. Via direct links to the pan-European network GÉANT, EUMEDCONNECT3 connects users to their counterparts in Europe and the rest of the world, providing a gateway to global collaborative research and education.

How is EUMEDCONNECT3 funded?Up to December 2019, the EUMEDCONNECT3 project is co-funded with EUR3.2m by the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) of the European Union from its regional European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI South). The remaining funds are being contributed by the partners.

EUMEDCONNECT3 and its services are free at point of use.

​How many users are connected to the EUMEDCONNECT3 network? Direct links from EUMEDCONNECT3 to Europe’s GÉANT network create a potential user base in excess of 50 million.

​What are the origins of EUMEDCONNECT3? EUMEDCONNECT3 builds on the success of its predecessor project, EUMEDCONNECT2. The first phase of the project, EUMEDCONNECT launched in 2004 under the European Commission’s Euro-Mediterranean Information Society (EUMEDIS) programme, which aimed to develop an inclusive Information Society in the region, EUMEDCONNECT created the first regional data-communications network for the Mediterranean. The project officially ended in December 2007 but, thanks to the ongoing interest of the European Commission and the commitment of the project partners, a smooth transition to EUMEDCONNECT2 was ensured. EUMEDCONNECT3 was then launched in September 2011. The importance of the network’s seamless continuation has been highlighted at major EU-MED e-infrastructures and ministerial conferences in Europe and in the Middle East.The project was subsequently extended to the end of 2016 and, more recently, to 2019.

Prior to July 2015, EUMEDCONNECT3 served also the North African partners countries Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia which have now joined the EU-funded AfricaConnect2 project.

Why do we need EUMEDCONNECT3? EUMEDCONNECT3 maintains in a more cost-effective way the high-bandwidth connectivity established by its predecessors and continues to serve the growing number of projects for which the network has become an essential infrastructure. The advanced connectivity allows researchers to run data-intensive applications at speeds that are unavailable, unreliable or unaffordable over the commercial Internet.

EUMEDCONNECT3 promotes digital inclusion, providing wider access to cutting-edge network resources and reducing the digital disparity between the Mediterranean and Europe. It also furthers regional integration by linking research and academic communities throughout the Mediterranean.

Many of the applications supported by this state-of-the-art infrastructure have a high societal impact, thus contributing significantly to population welfare and sustainable development in the region.

In addition, many of today’s global challenges, such as climate change or epidemic diseases, require global collaboration to tackle their specific local impacts. EUMEDCONNECT3 fully integrates Mediterranean researchers into the global Information Society to help identify and deliver local solutions.

​How is EUMEDCONNECT3 organised? EUMEDCONNECT3 is a network of networks. It provides international connectivity between national research and education networks (NRENs) in the region. Each NREN provides connectivity to universities and research centres in its own country. EUMEDCONNECT3 connects partner NRENs across the Eastern Mediterranean to create an integrated regional research community.

​Does EUMEDCONNEC3 interconnect with other world regions? EUMEDCONNECT3 has fast, direct connections to the pan-European GÉANT network. GÉANT in turn has connections to other world regions, including North America, Latin America and Asia-Pacific, thus creating a global gateway for research collaboration. Close links with the AfricaConnect2 community are being maintained as the two projects effectively bring the African and Arab R&E communities together.

​How does EUMEDCONNECT3 represent value for money? Like the original EUMEDCONNECT network, EUMEDCONNECT3 has been brought into service quickly and efficiently, using an established European model for research networking. Without EUMEDCONNECT3, many partners could not secure cost-effective access to high-bandwidth capabilities. The integrated approach to international connectivity offers significant savings compared to deploying multiple connections between individual Mediterranean partners and Europe. Building upon the success of this regional backbone concept, similar initiatives have been launched in other parts of the world, notably TEIN in Asia-Pacific and ALICE/RedCLARA in Latin America. EUMEDCONNECT3 is coordinated on behalf of the European Commission by GÉANT (formerly DANTE), which has experience in building and operating research and education networks around the world.

Who are the project partners? The current EUMEDCONNECT3 beneficary partners are Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine with ASREN acting as the regional partner organisation.

Other NRENs in the Mediterranean region can collaborate with EUMEDCONNECT3 partners via their direct GÉANT links.

The EUMEDCONNECT3 project is coordinated by GÉANT (formerly DANTE), a not-for-profit organisation that also operates regional networking projects in other parts of the world.

Supporting GÉANT in the project are the National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) of Cyprus (CyNet), France (RENATER), Greece (GRNET), Italy (Consortium GARR) and Spain (RedIRIS).

How long will EUMEDCONNECT3 run? Launched in 2011, EUMEDCONNECT3 is scheduled to run until the end of 2019.

​What plans are in place for networking after EUMEDCONNECT3? It is planned ASREN will take on responsibility for research and education e-Infrastructure deployment and promoting collaborative research within the region.

What activities will use this network? Any type of not-for-profit research and education activity can use the network. It is especially suited to data-intensive, bandwidth-hungry projects requiring reliable high-speed connectivity, but can equally be used to provide fast access to conventional web-based resources from all over the Mediterranean and other parts of the world. With over 2 million potential users in the region, the applications of the network are almost limitless.

What activities have benefitted from using the EUMEDCONNECT network? The network is fundamental to data-intensive research that addresses problems to which the Mediterranean is particularly vulnerable, such as desertification and water shortage; it helps promote sustainable farming and supports innovative ways of providing broader access to healthcare and education.

Bandwidth-hungry applications include climate change research and impact studies, e-health, e-learning and e-culture. Many of these applications require distributed (grid) computing resources and can draw on the powerful EUMEDGRID, which is enabled by the underlying network infrastructure.

Many of the applications supported by EUMEDCONNECT3 are of high societal impact, bringing direct benefit to the general population.

How successful do you think the EUMEDCONNECT3 network will be? EUMEDCONNECT3 builds on the proven success of its predecessor networks. It maintains the high-bandwidth connectivity in a more cost-effective way, offering an improved and expanding service to a growing number of projects.

Since its launch in 2004, EUMEDCONNECT has been used by a steadily increasing number of activities, with many research disciplines coming to rely on the connectivity. The EUMEDCONNECT project phases have migrated users onto the network, ensuring uninterrupted service for projects for which the network has become an essential infrastructure. A further increase in the number of collaborative programmes making use of the network is expected, and there is the potential to extend EUMEDCONNECT3 to other countries in the region. Creating closer working relationships with Europe will build international research communities to tackle issues of global importance and enable researchers in the Mediterranean to contribute to ground-breaking world-class projects.

Why should research and education communities use EUMEDCONNECT3? EUMEDCONNECT3 is dedicated solely to the purpose of supporting research and education. It delivers high-bandwidth connections that are free from the congestion and expense of commercial Internet traffic. Once their host institution is connected, researchers, academics and students can benefit from advanced connectivity at no extra cost.

​How do I connect to EUMEDCONNECT3? To benefit from the EUMEDCONNECT3 infrastructure, prospective users should contact their local NREN, to establish whether their host institution is already connected. If it is, they are ready to use EUMEDCONNECT3! If it isn’t, the national network will advise them of the application procedure. Contact details for each NREN are supplied on the EUMEDCONNECT3 website.